Coaching and Guidance
Clarity. Confidence. Momentum.
Whether you're planning your next move, facing a career crossroads or simply want to make more of where you are now, expert career coaching can help you move forward with clarity and confidence.
Find the right support for you
Our most popular options
Career Fast Forward
A focused session for when you have a specific career issue, decision or challenge and want expert input and practical actions to help you move forward. This has set deadlines and clear goals for achievement and can be used as part of an appraisal process.
Coaching
Leading a major project, restructure or period of change can be demanding. Coaching gives you independent, confidential support to think through challenges, test your thinking, maintain perspective and lead effectively through change. Available on a one-to-one or group basis.
Career Guidance
Not sure what you want or what to do next? Career Guidance helps you take a proper look at where you are, what you want and the options open to you. Together we’ll identify realistic possibilities and work out how you can move forward.
How we can help
Choose the support or resources that best match what you need right now.
Career Direction
Gain clarity on your options and decide what to do next.
Career Progression
Plan your next step, prepare for promotion and build a strong case for progression
Confidence & Impact
Build self-belief, communicate your value and increase your influence at work
Workplace Challenges
Navigate difficult situations, relationships and change with confidence
Leadership & Management
Develop your leadership skills, manage effectively and inspire your team
Wellbeing & Resilience
Manage stress, prevent burnout and create a sustainable work–life balance
Freelance or Business
Thinking of going freelance or starting your own business? We can help you plan wisely
Career Change
Explore a change of direction and work out what comes next for your career
How coaching works
Coaching grounded in publishing reality
01
Start with the real situation
We look at what is actually happening in your role, team or career — including the realities of publishing structures, salaries, job titles, progression and workplace culture
02
Understand your options in context
A promotion, move to another publisher, change of function, freelance career or move outside publishing all have different implications. We look at what is realistic, what you may be overlooking and what your experience is actually worth in the market
03
Decide what to do next
You leave with practical actions based on your situation and the realities of the publishing industry — whether that means making a case for progression, approaching another publisher, negotiating pay, handling a difficult workplace issue or planning a longer-term career change
Coaching that suits you
There isn't one right way to use coaching. You might need a single conversation to work through a particular situation, ongoing support as your career develops or a more structured programme to help you move forward.
Flexible Coaching
Come to us with the issue that's occupying you now. It might be progression, confidence, a difficult workplace situation, leadership, pay, career change or simply feeling unsure about what to do next.
We agree the focus together and work at a pace that suits you. Coaching can be arranged privately by you or commissioned by your employer.
Career Fast Forward
If you want to take a more strategic approach to your career, Career Fast Forward gives you dedicated time to step back from the day-to-day, decide where you want to go and create a plan for getting there
Together we identify what you want to achieve, turn that into realistic goals and actions and review your progress as you move forward. It's particularly useful if you want to develop within publishing but don't have a clear career development plan — including people working in organisations where formal appraisal or career planning may be limited
Whichever route you choose, the coaching starts with you, what you're dealing with and the realities of working in book publishing.
We've been alongside publishing careers for decades
For years, we've worked with people while they're actually doing their publishing jobs — not just when they're looking for their next one.
We've been there when someone has been handed a major title unexpectedly, inherited a publication schedule that feels impossible, stepped into management for the first time or been given a secondment they desperately want to turn into a permanent role.
We've helped people navigate the pressures around publishing meetings, sales targets and book fairs, deal with restructures, adjust to a new company culture, prepare for difficult conversations and work out how to make their contribution visible.
What makes our approach different is that we can effectively step into the job with you and think as though we’re doing it alongside you. We can think like a CEO, Publishing Director, Marketing Director, Rights Manager, Publicist, Commissioning Editor, Production Manager, Editorial Assistant, Sales Assistant — and almost every publishing role in between.
That means we don’t just understand your career from the outside. We can think through the job itself with you — the decisions you’re making, the people you’re dealing with and the reality of the role you’re doing.
We've supported people through challenging working relationships, helped them regain confidence after a setback and been there when they've realised that a job they once loved no longer feels right.
And we've seen careers unfold over time. People we've first worked with early in their careers have returned as managers, directors and leaders, bringing completely different questions and challenges with them
That's why our coaching starts with the reality of your working life — not an abstract idea of what a career ought to look like
What that looks like in practice
Not sure what kind of support you need?
You don't need to work that out before you contact us. Tell us what's happening in your working life and we'll help you decide whether coaching is the right approach and what kind of support would be most useful.